In certain societies, there is a set of hierarchies that everyone is expected to follow. Patriarchal societies dictate that men are in charge, giving them full scope to make decisions for not only themselves but their families. While sometimes the stakes are low, they can also be deadly. A 16-year-old Pakistani girl lost her life after her father allegedly shot her. The father reportedly grew frustrated that his daughter refused to delete her TikTok account. But instead of just taking her phone, he took her life.
According to Pakistani police, the unnamed father shot and killed his daughter on July 8, 2025, in an apparent “honor killing.”
“The girl’s father had asked her to delete her TikTok account. On refusal, he killed her,” a police spokesperson told AFP, per People. According to a police report, investigators said he killed the girl “for honor.” He was arrested shortly after.
Police said that the girl’s family tried to “portray the murder as a suicide.” The Pakistani teen girl and her family lived in the city of Rawalpindi, which is near the capital of Islamabad.
Pakistan is a Muslim-majority country in which women are often subjected to violence by members of their families if they don’t follow strict rules of behavior. The rules apply to both public and online spaces.
CBS News reported that TikTok is a “wildly popular” app in the country because it provides accessibility in a country with low literacy levels. As a result, some have been able to earn income through the app. However, only 30% of women in the country own a smartphone. Fewer than one-fourth of Pakistan’s women are part of the formal economy.
This isn’t the first time in 2025 that a Pakistani teen girl has been killed for her TikTok use. In June, 17-year-old Sana Yousaf, who had over a million followers, was shot and killed by a young man after she allegedly rejected his romantic advances. And in January, 14-year-old Hira Anwar, was killed by her father and uncle after posting “inappropriate” videos that “brought shame to the family.”
